Tuesday, November 29, 2011

﻿I admit it. I'm an instant gratification girl. I want to do the work, and see my efforts pay off immediately. The universe, however, doesn't work like that. So, I get impatient. I wonder if I'm doing everything I should be doing. I lament that my ship hasn't come in. In fact, I don't even see it on the horizon. I start to doubt myself, and what I'm doing. The chatter starts in my head, quietly at first..."what are you doing?", "what makes you think you can do this?". And it gets louder and louder..."you aren't good enough to pull this off", "you aren't a REAL artist". And on it goes swirling, swirling around my head, and spinning me into a freefall.

When I start to feel those old feelings of unworthiness start to take hold, I stop for a minute. I breathe in. I breathe out. And I try to find that peaceful place in my heart. The super-secret place where I keep my most precious dreams, and where, in that quiet place I can remember why I do what I do. And in my heart of hearts, I know that I can do whatever I want, be the person/the artist/the poet/the teacher/the... that I want to be.

And in that moment, I begin to hear my gentler, more loving voice telling me that these obstacles, these disappointments, are only setting me up for better days ahead. Because no matter how much I want to be in charge, no matter how much I want to control this journey, no matter how much I want to chart my course, the truth is, it's out of my hands, and there is a plan. There is the "dream come true". And it's all waiting for me. All I have to do is follow my heart, pursue my passion, remain open, and be patient. Because my plan isn't the plan. And what appear to be hurdles or delays occur only because the universe has a better idea, a better plan than I could ever imagine.

Friday, November 25, 2011

The year has turned its circle,The seasons come and go.The harvest all is gathered inAnd chilly north winds blow.Orchards have shared their treasures,The fields, their yellow grain,So open wide the doorway~Thanksgiving comes again! ~Old Rhyme

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Every morning, once the coffee's brewed and the dog has piddled, I cozy in for bit of writing in my journal. It's a time of the day that I look forward to a lot. The house is very quiet, the sun's not quite up. I love having all of the curtains open and watching the day begin.

I write out my daily to-do list. I write about the dream I had the night before. I write out quotes that I love. Mostly, I just love writing whatever pops into my head and just blah-blah-blah-ing about it. From that, very often, springs something fun. A new stitchery idea. Blog post fodder. And, some days there's just really nothing. Just a lot of patter and rambling.

I started adding little doo-dads and images and phrases to my journal this summer. I don't know why this didn't dawn on my years ago, but what are you gonna do? So, now, I have all of this inspiration on each page, which will also give me something to write about. If nothing else, it's pretty to look at while I'm sipping coffee.

This is one of my favorite Oscar Wilde quotes. It goes into every journal I start.

This is what I wish my desktop looked like.

I think I've shown you some of these pages before, but this one especially I love. I don't know where I got this postcard, but it makes me happy. I love all of those curvy women!

And sprinkled throughout my pages are good reminders for me.

I've also created some of my own doo-dads from artsy tidbits I have in my stash. They give me a place to write something that I want to be able to see later as I flip through past pages.

I just affix them to my pages with a bit of decorative tape or ribbon, giving the pages some layer and texture. Yum.

Sometimes I just glue in a glassine envelop and put a decorated shipping tag in there. I've stamped "note to self" on this one, with one of my little "reminders to self".

Remember the pop-up books from when we were kids? That's what these remind me of. Little hidden treasures and secrets in my journal.

I make up a bunch of these doo-dads, so they'll be "at the ready" as I'm creating journal pages. I don't like to interrupt the creative flow to punch shapes from my vintage ledger pages, or stamp a phrase onto an envelope. I just want to slap it onto the page and move on! So, I have a little stash in with my art journal fodder. Very handy. I've done a bit of de-stashing, and have got several of my doo-dad packs for sale on my Etsy shop. Don't forget to use my HAPPYBIRTHDAYTAMMY coupon code at checkout to get your 20% discount!

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Do you remember this commercial? Oh, it always made me cry (such a sappy girl!). The first time I saw it I happened to be watching tv with my dad, who was absolutely my hero. When the little girl asks him to do it again, I got all choked up. When I looked over at my dad, he was teary, too. One of those wonderful memories.

Friday, November 11, 2011

I'm really excited to have been invited by Alma Stoller to teach at her new STITCHED online class series. You can get all the details here, and I'll be posting about my class in the next few weeks. I hope you'll be able to join us for some good stitching fun.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

I finished up a couple of new pillows. A bit of fluffed-up stitchy goodness. I don't know about you, but I love little pillows tossed about hither-thither around our home. Sweet little bright spots on the sofa or window seat.

The larger petals of this flower are from a vintage table cloth I got at a tag sale that had a whole bunch of holes (like really big ones - I have no idea what could have happened to it)﻿, but it was 50 cents. The perfect price to cut up and use for a project like this.

﻿I added in a few little stitched flowers and vintage rick rack. So sweet.

Monday, November 7, 2011

So, I just realized that a few days ago I promised you a chance to win something today, as we continue the celebration, but I forgot to tell you what Oops! (I can be so impaired. Speaking of aging. Ack!)

A tinsel-y Christmas tree ornament.

Well, I've put together a collection of orange and pink goodness!! Every bit of it handmade and hand-picked by me.

A tube of magic, tied up with an orange ribbon and pink flowers.

I have been organizing my creative space, and as I was organizing, I thought it would be really fun to pick my two favorite colors, pull a little assortment together, and send it off to a new home.

A box of fifteen notecards...made by yours truly.

Look at all this loot! All for one of you sweet readers.

A mini-art print.

How do you win, you ask?

Orange and Pink Goodness

Easypeasy. Simply leave a comment here, with your favorite birthday story. It could be your birthday story, a child's birthday story, a friend's birthday story, whatever you want to share.

A glass pendant. I actually have mine hanging from my rearview mirror! Fun!

It can be a sweet story, a funny story, an embarrassing story...again, whatever! Just leave it here before November 14th.

A close-up of a pouf and the jars of baubles, buttons, and beads. Oh my!

Won't it be fun to read all of them?!

Stitched detail on the pillow.

On November 15th, I'll share my favorite birthday story with you, draw a winning story, and announce the winner here. Fun!